There needs to be a new definition of bipartisan. The "bi" can no longer be accurately portrayed as Republicans and Democrats because the lines of distinction between the two have become so blurred that one has difficulty distinguishing one from the other. A clearer distinction is to be found between conservative and liberal. The recent Cloture vote on June 28, 2007 will serve as an example.

Republicans Senators who held fast in support of the Bill were:

Bennett of Utah

Craig of Idaho

Graham of South Carolina

Gregg of New Hampshire

Hagel of Nebraska

Kyl of Arizona

Lott of Mississippi

Lugar of Indiana

Martinez of Florida

McCain of Arizona

Snowe of Maine

Specter of Pennsylvania

These Senators favored amnesty; amnesty that would extend to gang members and criminals currently on trial in our criminal justice system. They believe that it is ok to arbitrarily apply the rule of law thereby, giving a minority group a distinct advantage. They believe that it is ok for a "special" class of people to be able to cut in line in front of people who are following our laws and trying to legally enter the U.S. They believe that it is ok to forgive crimes of people who are basically good hard-working people who only want to make a better life for themselves and their families. They believe that past failure should not be considered when evaluating current legislation. They believe that the government has the answers to all of our problems. They believe that there is an endless supply of money available for the government to use even if no one is held accountable for how it is spent or if stated goals are reached. They believe that there is so much money available that they can send millions to the Mexican Government to create programs that will keep Mexicans in Mexico. They believe that it is ok for immigrants to take up to nine years to learn English even though the government provides free English classes to any who want to enroll. They believe that the majority of the American people are too involved in their day-to-day affairs to be engaged enough in the political process to hold them accountable for passing bad legislation. They are shortsighted, making decisions that are first and foremost designed to get them reelected without considering the consequences for future generations. In short, they are arrogant. These characteristics are most often attributed to liberals.

The following Democrats went against their party’s leadership and voted against Cloture:

Baucus of Montana

Bayh of Indiana

Bingaman of New Mexico

Brown of Ohio

Byrd of West Virginia

Dorgan of North Dakota

Harkin of Iowa

Landrieu of Louisiana

McCaskill of Missouri

Rockefeller of West Virginia

Stabenow of Michigan

Tester of Montana

Webb of West Virginia

These Senators believe in the traditions established by our Founding Fathers in the Constitution. They believe that breaking the law has consequences. They believe in the uniform application of the law without which there would be chaos and anarchy. They believe in the equality of all men. No one is above the law. They consider long-term consequences, not just the temporary political advantage. They stood by their principles and did not give in to pressures that said this is the best bill possible and an immigration reform bill had to be passed now. They perceived that provisions of this bill were not enforceable just like previous immigration reform bills that failed, putting us in the untenable position we are in today. They are independent thinkers who don’t follow the herd. They were open-minded and listened to what their constituents were saying. These beliefs are most often attributed to conservatives.

My point is that, by today’s definition of the term, a bipartisan effort/group may be composed of Democrats and Republicans with all holding liberal views. The public perception is that it is impartial because it includes both Republicans and Democrats. But that is not true because they are all ideologically liberal. And, as a result, the outcome is biased. The same criticism would apply if the effort/group were composed of all conservatives.

In order for there to be truly bipartisan efforts/groups which can actually claim to have come to a consensus that is acceptable to the majority of American citizens, there must be bipartisanship based on liberal/conservative designations.

I urge all readers to consider, over time, the voting record of their representatives in order to determine their ideology—conservative or liberal. Your effort will be rewarded as you develop the ability to determine if they really represent your views or not. And, in the future, you can base your voting decisions upon the beliefs and principles that are important to you and NOT upon party affiliation.